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1.0 Local District Designation

The Druid Hills Local Historic District is designated by local ordinance (De-Kalb County Historic Preservation Ordinance), falling under the jurisdiction

of the local DeKalb County Historic Preservation Commission. A local historicdistrict is “overlaid” on existing zoning classifications in a community such thatthe Preservation Commission deals with only the appearance of the district andnot the way properties are used.

Design guidelines are a set of criteria uniformly applied to evaluate the appro-priateness of proposed changes in historic districts. The ultimate goal of designguidelines is to protect the visual qualities of the district that reflect the historyand heritage of that community.

These design guidelines have been established primarily for use by the Preserva-tion Commission in evaluating proposed alterations to historic properties in theDruid Hills Local Historic District. In addition, these guidelines are intended toaid property owners throughout the community who may be considering reha-bilitation or new construction projects. The guidelines are not rigid restrictionsbut rather should be viewed as standards which, if followed, will result in soundpreservation practices.

This manual is divided into three sections:

Part One: The District and the Process provides (1) an overview of thedistrict boundaries and the purpose of these guidelines, (2) an introduction todesign review in DeKalb County and how the process relates to other localregulations, (3) information on the history of the district, and (4) an analysis ofthe district’s extensive historic resources.

Part Two: General Design Guidelines and Preservation Principles provides(1) basic preservation principles and design concepts and (2) specific guidelinesfor architectural rehabilitation, new construction and additions, natural land-scapes, cultural landscapes, archeological resources, and nonhistoric proper-ties.

Part Three: Character Areas Analyses & Guidelines presents detailed analy-ses of the landscape and architectural resources of several distinct sub-areas ofthe Druid Hills district and offers guidelines specific to those areas. The fiveareas are (1) Druid Hills Character Area 1, (2) Druid Hills Character Area 2, (3)University Park/Emory Highlands/Emory Estates, (4) Emory Grove, and (5) Park-wood. Analyses and guidelines will be prepared for additional character areasin the future.

1.1 Druid Hills Local Historic District

The Druid Hills Local Historic District has been designated by the Board ofCommissioners of DeKalb County under the authority of the 1994 DeKalb

County Historic Preservation Ordinance. This ordinance provides for a uniformprocedure for designation of historic properties and districts. Such designation,and the subsequent implementation of the design review process, is primarilyintended to recognize and preserve the unique character and integrity of theseareas and properties while also allowing for their active use. (For boundaries ofthe district see Map A: Local Historic District.)

The DeKalb County Ordinance has established that designated historic districts:

T have special character or special historic or aesthetic value or interest;

T represent one or more periods, styles, or types of architecture typical ofone or more eras in the history of the county, state, or nation;

T cause such area, by reason of such factors, to constitute a visibly percep-tible section of the county;

T are currently on or have been declared eligible ... for listing in theNational (or Georgia) Register of Historic Places.

The Druid Hills Local Historic District meets these criteria.

1.2 Defining the District Boundaries

The Druid Hills Local Historic District is an area of historic and architecturalsignificance defined within the boundaries of the Druid Hills Civic Associa-

tion (DHCA), established in 1938. District boundaries on the west, south, andeast sides are in part defined by jurisdictional boundaries—Fulton County to thewest, the City of Atlanta to the west and south, and the City of Decatur to theeast. (See Map B: Area Context.) Within these parameters and the limits of theDHCA, a core area has been defined for the district encompassing two existingNational Register districts (Druid Hills and Cameron Court) and one pendingNational Register district consisting of the University Park, Emory Estates, andEmory Highlands developments. (See Map C: National Register Districts.)

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Druid Hills Design Guidelines

Surrounding this core area are other historic developments that have been in-cluded in the local district—to the west, Briarwood, Rosedale, Druid Hills Heights,and the west side of Briarcliff Road, not included in the National Register dis-trict; and, to the northeast, Emory Grove, a 1940s planned development.

Chelsea Heights and Parkwood, southeast of the core area, have been includedbecause of their historic development patterns. Housing in these subdivisionsdates to the 1950s and 1960s, but the road patterns and layout date to the 1920sin Parkwood and the 1930s and 1940s in Chelsea Heights.

An important historic and environmental component of Druid Hills is the Peavineand Lullwater Creek system. One area located on the Emory University campus,Peavine Creek and the open area buffering its west bank, has been included toprotect this fragile natural historic resource.

Buffer areas have been included in certain places at the edges of the district.These buffer areas include nonhistoric properties, changes to which have thepotential to impact surrounding historic properties as well as the district as awhole. Falling into this category are certain areas along Briarcliff Road and somenonhistoric developments along the southern boundary of the district.

Finally, intrusions (that is, areas with a high concentration of nonhistoric devel-opment) within the core area are included because of their potential to impactsurrounding historic properties and the district as a whole. Intrusions includedevelopment along Ponce de Leon Manor, Ridgecrest Court, Artwood Road,Barton Woods Road, Briardale Lane, and Vilenah Lane/Dan Johnson Road.

gruent with the Secretary of the Interior’s Standards and Guidelines for Rehabili-tation of Historic Buildings.

3 The primary goal for new development is to accommodate stylistic changewhile maintaining visual integrity. In this approach designs for new build-

ings reflect the basic neighborhood characteristics of siting, setback, mass, scale,and materials and contain features that are similar to those of historic structures.Both new designs and new interpretations of historic designs are appropriateprovided that they are compatible with their surroundings.

4 The primary goal for the natural history of the community is to protect the historic landscape design through preservation and rehabilitation of the

natural elements—urban forest and Peavine/Lullwater Creek system—on whichit was based. Historic integrity of the curvilinear pattern of roads and platting oflots should also be retained in order to protect the visual appearance of thecommunity and water quality in area streams.

1.3 Goals & Objectives

Designation of the Druid Hills Local Historic District and implementationof these design guidelines will contribute greatly to the realization of the

following broad goals.

1The primary goal for the community is to preserve the historic and vi-sual integrity so they continue to convey a sense of time and place associ-

ated with periods of historic development. The historic relationships of build-ings to each other, their sites, lot layouts, and landscapes are important.

2 The primary goal for individual historic resources is to preserve the integrityof each surviving historic structure, lot layout pattern, and site. Design guide-

lines for alterations should focus on appropriate rehabilitation procedures thatwill retain those character-defining features that distinguish the historic resourcewhile allowing for appropriate development. These guidelines should be con-